Diageo's Walsh to join board of United Spirits

When he was chief executive of Diageo, Paul Walsh made a habit of collecting
other drinks companies, pouring £2.5bn into acquisitions in the last three
years alone. Now he appears to be collecting directorships.

Paul Walsh, who ceased to be chief executive of Diageo on July 1, has joined the board of United Spirits Limited, the Indian drinks company in which Diageo owns a majority stake.

The 58-year-old is joining the board of United Spirits Limited (USL), the Indian drinks giant in which Diageo became the major shareholder earlier this year.

A spokesperson for Diageo said Mr Walsh will not receive any remuneration for the role.

The USL board position is not the only link Mr Walsh will retain with Diageo, which he led for 13 years until July, when he handed over the keys to the drinks cabinet to Ivan Menezes.

The drinks executive does not officially retire from Diageo until June 2014 to ensure a smooth transition. He will also continue to earn £80,000 a year to represent the Johnnie Walker producer in the wider Scotch whisky industry – a role that could last for up to five years.

But Mr Walsh, who earned almost £15m in Diageo’s last financial year in salary, benefits and long-term bonuses, isn’t limiting himself to the drinks industry alone.

From February he will become chairman of Compass Group, the £15.5 billion catering and outsourcing company. His fee at Compass is not known but outgoing chairman Sir Roy Gardner received £496,000 including benefits last year.

Mr Walsh has also been a non-executive director of Unilever since May 2009, a role for which he was paid €143,000 (£122,000) in 2012. He is also on the boards of FedEx and Avanti Communications.

Diageo acquired a 25.02pc majority stake in USL for £594m after striking a deal with Indian drinks tycoon Vijay Mallya’s United Breweries Holdings.

Mr Walsh will serve on the USL board alongside Mr Mallya, also the boss of the Formula One Force India team and the ailing Indian airline Kingfisher.

The deal was viewed as a major coup for Diageo as it has given the UK company better access to India’s fast-growing alcohol market, which is forecast to expand by about 15pc a year by 2017.

Although Diageo’s brands account for some 20pc of the Scotch whisky imported into India, the market is still dominated by local spirits. USL has an estimated 42pc share of India’s total alcoholic drinks market.

The Office of Fair Trading is currently investigating whether USL should be forced to relinquish Whyte & Mackay, the historic Glasgow-based Scotch whisky business, following Diageo’s acquisition of the stake, amid concerns over competition.